Quick Posts & Lists Archive

A website devoted to songwriting in punk rock would be totally lacking if it did not have an entry on what is the most ubiquitous and popular chord progression in modern punk music: I – V – vi – IV (or for the Roman

Say you’ve got song and you’re struggling with the format. Maybe you’ve got a chorus but aren’t sure how to highlight it. Maybe that intro you’re working on isn’t cutting it…. well maybe you should just start out with the chorus. In the video

Nothing gets a great song going like a great first line. For this volume of our “great first lines” series I’ve got five more songs (with nothing to tie them together than just not being punk songs) that have awesome attention-grabbing first lines. Each

Everybody likes music. People who write music especially like music. So, if you love music and you write songs, why not just write a song about music you love? While such a topic seems like it might not work, each of these songs shows

One hallmark of a great song is a great first line. There’s nothing quite like a killer lyrical opening to draw in the listener and keep them interested. This will be the first in an ongoing series of songs with great first lines. This time

Here’s Paul Simon in 1974 on the Dick Cavett show. He decides to show Dick a half-finished song, which turns out to be one of his greatest hits, “Still Crazy After All These Years.” This video is a rare glimpse into the songwriting process